The Villain's Counterattack

Chapter 529: Buzhou splits up, Anlong is a real man

The Demon Sect's strongest are respected, and it is extremely difficult to decide who will belong to whom through dialogue, so...

An Long, the leader of Tianlian Sect, VS the current leader of Butian Dao. They fought for three hundred rounds and ended in a draw.

The two tall and short generals of Tianlian Sect VS Dugu Feng, fighting for more than 500 rounds, Dugu Feng wins!

Seeing his right-hand men in such a state of disarray, An Long couldn't help but sigh. "The Yangtze River's waves behind push those in front, and those in front die on the beach. The ancients were right. Boy, now it's you young people who rule the world. Old men like Uncle Long are no longer capable of doing anything but following behind the strong and cheering for them. We can't shoulder the heavy responsibility of leading the charge."

Yang Xuyan was furious. "Uncle Long, this is a bit too much. You're the fifth of the Eight Great Masters of the Saint Sect, the leader of the Tianlian Sect, the leader of the Buzhou Trading Company, and a leading business tycoon throughout the Sui Dynasty. Not long ago, you were ambitiously trying to bring Goguryeo's business under your control. And you're telling me you're an old man?"

"I'm an old man who can book Chengdu Sanhualou for three days. So far, I've only met Uncle Long." Yang Xuyan gave him a dark look. An Long chuckled strangely, "Uncle Long is old, and his heart is old, but his martial arts skills are still there, and his youth is eternal. How can a naive youngster like you understand the joy of a true man?"

At this point, An Long couldn't help but sigh and said, "Boy, don't blame Uncle Long for not standing by you. Blame it on fate. Decades ago, I, Uncle Long, recognized Brother Shi as the leader of the Holy Sect's revival and will never abandon him. It was fine when Emperor Wen was stable and the world was peaceful before, but today the world is in turmoil and heroes are rising up. Brother Shi intends to unify the Holy Sect and restore the glory of the Hundred Schools. Uncle Long will stand by him no matter what."

"Don't accuse your elders of being dishonest, kid. Uncle Long provided the capital for Buzhou Trading Company, and it was Uncle Long who was in the spotlight. Even many of the shopkeepers were his subordinates. Brother Shi needed financial support to come out of retirement. Uncle Long cannot give you any of the Buzhou Trading Company in the Great Sui Dynasty, but..."

Everyone is afraid of a "but". An Long changed the topic and generously transferred all the forces of Buzhou Trading Company outside the territory of the Sui Dynasty, including Tuyuhun, Ryukyu, Linyi, Goguryeo and other places, to Yang Xuyan, and also handed over the secret department of Buzhou Trading Company to him. Dugu Feng heard it carefully from the side, and An An sighed at An Long's generosity.

Yang Xuyan chuckled strangely, then glanced at An Long and said, "Uncle Long, I heard that many members of the Anbu quietly withdrew three months ago and became shopkeepers. The trading companies stationed outside the Great Sui Dynasty are reducing their industries and transferring assets to the headquarters."

"Uncle Long is indeed generous. The Buzhou Anbu was originally led by my Bu Tian Dao. The two hundred core disciples are all from the Bu Tian Dao's outer sect, among whom there are more than twenty Xiantian inner sect disciples. The number of candidates is even more than a thousand. Uncle Long, please tell me that all these people will be handed over to me?"

Yang Xuyan raised his eyebrows slightly, and An Long gave an awkward, guilty smile, thinking to himself that this was impossible. You are the best at overall planning and training talents. If it weren't for the fact that those inner disciples at the innate level were too loyal and you had detected the abnormality in advance and transferred too many people away, I, Uncle Long, would have wanted to have all the data for myself.

"As for foreign influence, does the Buzhou Trading Company really have any foreign influence? The Tuguhun branch is just a liaison office and transport team. The real power holders are still my second and third brothers. Linyi occupies a grain production base, and its real business is basically zero. The Ryukyu Islands are the Dongming Sect's stronghold. Apart from liaison personnel, how can there be any so-called branches? As for Goguryeo..."

"Is Liaodong still considered Goguryeo territory?" Yang Xuyan's question embarrassed Anlong. He chuckled and said, "Uncle Long, I'll take a small loss. However, all of your territory, young Yang, will be yours as part of the Buzhou Trading Company branch. How do you do that?"

Yang Xuyan looked at him deeply, a faint smile forming on his lips as he said, "Uncle Long, are you really that pessimistic about my nephew? I, the Marquis of Liaodong, am at least a high-ranking official. I command tens of thousands of soldiers and horses, a strong army, and am assisted by several masters. I also have close ties with the Dongming Sect and Pegasus Ranch. If the world turns upside down, is it really impossible for me to compete?"

Anlong chuckled and looked at him with an extraordinary look. His lips opened and closed, revealing a few words: Master Yijian!

Dugu Feng suddenly understood when he saw this. His master was the Marquis of Liaodong, with strong troops and territory. However, the original intention of establishing the Marquis of Liaodong was to contain Goguryeo. There was Goguryeo in the east, Mohe in the north, and Khitan and Shiwei in the northwest. None of them were easy to deal with.

If the Mohe, Khitan and Shiwei were only hidden dangers, then the threat from Goguryeo was an ever-present threat. Emperor Yang Guang of the Sui Dynasty launched three expeditions to Goguryeo. Although Goguryeo was almost destroyed and its people, army and national strength were greatly reduced, as long as the city of Pyongyang was still there and the master sword master Fu Cailin was alive, Goguryeo would still be a powerful country.

If his master, the Marquis of Liaodong, had the support of the Sui Dynasty, it would have been fine. No matter how powerful a Grandmaster was, how could he rival a hundred thousand troops? However, the Sui Emperor Yang Guang's original intentions and the retreat of many aristocratic families had put Liaodong in a somewhat awkward position. Since becoming Yang Xuyan's apprentice, Dugu Feng had learned from him the details of the three expeditions to Goguryeo and the complex web of interests involved. The Sui Emperor's goals in these three expeditions to Goguryeo were not fully achieved, or even largely unattainable, and the losses suffered by the aristocratic families were substantial. Now, neither side wanted to be involved in this area, which led to the emergence of Yang Xuyan, the Marquis of Liaodong.

However, for Emperor Yang Guang of the Sui Dynasty, Liaodong County was of little value as it could not harm the aristocratic families and weaken Goguryeo. And for the aristocratic families, Liaodong County, with its many mountains, rivers and forests and its proximity to many foreign ethnic groups, was a waste of money as it cost far more than it earned and was far less attractive than the territory of the Sui Dynasty.

Now thinking about it carefully, Dugu Feng realized that although An Long said so much, he actually took away everything he could control, and what was left to his master Yang Xuyan was the part he was unable to control. Thinking of this, Dugu Feng couldn't help but become alert. Compared to himself, a rookie who had just started out, An Long, a long-established veteran, was much more skilled in martial arts.

Yang Xuyan and Anlong were engaged in a verbal battle, but the focus of their dispute was the secret bases in Sichuan and Shu. Each of these secret bases had its own secret industry, or research direction, to ensure that the entire Buzhou Trading Company always maintained its technological leadership.

Yang Xuyan would never admit that he would secretly release people every once in a while, or guide people in the base to improve their technology. He always claimed that he was just a leader with foresight and the courage to use people and delegate power.

"If you were ten years younger, or ten years older, perhaps the situation today would be very different." After some debate, the two reached a preliminary consensus. Or rather, ever since An Long took action against Buzhou Shangxing, Yang Xuyan immediately reacted and made many responses. Now it was just a clear division. An was An, and Yang was Yang, that was all.

An Long lamented the ten-year period, but Yang Xuyan couldn't have grown ten years older, and An Long couldn't have been ten years younger. Yang Xuyan laughed heartily and said, "Men remain teenagers until death. Uncle Long could still fight for three days and three nights at Sanhua Tower, so why admit to being old?"

An Long rolled his eyes and said with a disdainful curl of his lips, "How can you, an innocent little boy, keep talking about Sanhua Tower? You talk as if you've been there before."

Yang Xuyan was speechless: This, I have never been there.

Anlong: Haha, little boy.

The Yang Xuyan sank and could not be revived, so Anlong, a true man, won.